Small Favors
by leftyguitar
Summary: Sofia's friend from LA has a favor to ask.Greg centric story AU, SofiaGreg X with Close to Home.Sequel to Panic! A bit of Greg whumping in this, just to warn you.
1. What day is it, again?

**Disclaimer: CSI isn't mine, and neither is Close to Home, but you probably know that by now. **

**Spoilers: Season 7 expect Living Doll**

**A/n: This is a sequel to the story Panic! It is set four or five years later, and is slightly AU. By now Greggo's a bit more cheerful, but still has a bit of angst in this story. I am keeping the journal format, because I like it and have better luck telling something in first person point of view. Just to keep this clear, This story is rated T and staying that way, so don't expect sex scenes or anything like that, this isn't that kind of story, not that I have anything against them. **

What day is it, again?

Okay, I'm been doing this journal for a while now. After the incident with Hodges, it kind of became a habit. I don't do it all the time, just when I'm really stressed out. It does help me to vent without hurting anyone, and helps me figure things out in my own head sometimes.

Anyway, I'm starting to ramble again. I think I'll start this story the day that Sofia's friend Annabeth, a lawyer from LA, came to visit and asked us for a favor. That's how this whole thing started, not that any of this her fault.

I had just come home after pulling a double. Sara and I had gotten the floater from Lake Mead. Despite the promotion, Grissom still gives us all the fun cases, or at least it feels like he does. I don't think I'll ever be able to get the smell of decomp completely out of my clothes.

Anyhow, I had just arrived home a little later then I expected to, but that was normal, however annoying it is. Fortunately, Sofia had gotten a hit and run that had been resolved quickly.

She was waiting for me at home with our son, Eric. He's a great kid. I love him, and just wish Grissom wouldn't keep sticking me with double shifts, not that I'm complaining. The Bugman has been a great boss most of the time. The promotion had helped a lot, especially after Sofia and I had gotten married.

It still feels a little surreal sometimes, but my family means everything to me. Of course, catching the bad guys is a close second.

Anyway, I had just gotten to the front door and heard the dogs start to bark. We have Mutt, and now a Lab/Chow cross named Bear, but he's still a only a puppy. Good dog, though.

Sofia opened the door for me and said hello. She was a little annoyed that I was late, and I apologized. I told her that Sara and I had gotten suck with the floater. Promotion or no promotion, I was still the youngest member of the team and still got a lot of those type of cases. It really sucks being on the wrong end of the chain of command sometimes.

"Smells like it." She wasn't kidding.

"You know you like it." I teased. Turning things into jokes was my best defense, and most of time it worked.

She laughed. "You need to get in the shower. We have company coming."

"Sorry, what day is it again?" Double shifts tend make me lose track of the day.

"Friday! Don't tell me you forgot!" I groaned inwardly. Sofia had some friends from LA coming over soon. Her friend had said that they needed to talk about something important.

"Of course not." I gave her a quick kiss and heading to our bedroom when a four year old boy stopped me.

"Daddy!" He smiled happily. Eric's a really cute kid. He has his mom's blue eyes and my messy hair. Eric's also the only four year I know of that all ready knows how o play chess. "Can we watch Skelton Jack now?" He had been looking forward to it all day. Eric was our "Nightmare Before Christmas" DVD. Eric loves Tim Burton movies almost as much as I do.

"In a little bit. I have to shower first." He giggled.

"You smell funny." Like I said, he's adorable.

**A/n: There's the beginning.** **I just had to introduce little Eric and give a little background info before starting the case. More action later, I promise. It's one am here and I just need to get some sleep first. **


	2. I have a favor to ask you guys

**Disclaimer: not mine.**

**Spoilers: Same.**

**A/n: Thanks for reviewing! Hope you like this story so far. Now it's time to introduce our case. **

Can You Guys Do Me a Favor?

Where were we? Smelling like the floater on Doc Robbins' table and getting ready to greet guests. Typical Friday for the Sanders household.

After a quick shower, one problem was solved, but Sofia's friend was going to here soon, so I started dinner. I do most of the cooking here, as my mom made sure that I knew how to cook from a young age, and when Sofia does cook, the fire alarm goes off. Not that I'm complaining. I love her the way she is.

I was a little late coming home from work, so I would have to hurry to get dinner ready on time. Since I couldn't watch his movie with him and cook at the same time, Eric decided that he wanted to help me. That was lot of fun as well. Eric was happy doing anything that we were working on together.

Anyway, Annabeth, her daughter, who was only a few years older then Eric, and her finance arrived just as Eric and I were finishing up in the kitchen.

The dogs announced their arrival to the entire neighborhood, of course. At least nobody will be able to get in our house without somebody noticing. Their barking immediately brought Eric out of the kitchen to say hello. I joined them after setting the table.

Annabeth was carrying what looked like a thick case file. After working as a CSI, you just kind of know what these things look like. I had feeling that this was a little more then just a social call.

She said hi to Sofia, who introduced Eric and me. Annabeth's daughter, Kim seemed a lot more excited to meet Eric then me, and the two of them wandered off to his room. Her fiancé was a detective named Jason. He seemed like a nice guy, but Mutt, being the protective animal he was, snarled at him the second he stepped too close to Eric. Bear was just bouncing around all over the place like an over-excited puppy.

I quickly told Mutt that Jason was friend, and the teeth disappeared, though he still watched him like a hawk. Sometimes he's worse then the German Shepherds that the department uses as police dogs. Jason himself didn't seem to mind. He gave a polite hello and we all headed for the dining room.

After a few minutes of small talk, we served dinner. Sofia and Annabeth were catching up on what happened since they had seen each other last. Jason and I mostly talked about work, and the Dodgers.

After supper Annabeth told us why they had come here, pulling out the heavy case file she had brought. Eric and Kim had gone off to watch Skeleton Jack in another room while Jason and Annabeth told us about a serial killer in LA that they couldn't get because a judge wouldn't give them a warrant. The killer had since skipped town, but they had reason to believe that the guy had connections in Vegas.

Apparently, he liked to target children. That immediately got my attention. Annabeth just wanted us to at least go through our cases to see if we could match his MO to any cases in Vegas. After going through the file they brought, I knew we had to help catch this guy before he struck again.

The original CSI on the case was a Matt Glaser. Warrick had mentioned in passing, and I was sure that we would be working with him if we found anything. Rick had said that he was a good CSI, with tendency toward sarcasm. I just hoped that we could catch the guy before he claimed another victim. He had left prints and DNA behind, but wasn't in the system, so they nobody to match it to. I hoped that I would have better luck, but wasn't counting on anything.

Annabeth and her family were staying at our place for the time being, with her and Jason taking the spare bedroom that usually served as an office, and Kim would bunk in with Eric, on the air mattress. We all decided to get a good night's sleep before going through the unsolved cases at our lab.

**A/n: This chapter is still a little short, but I will start the next one after work tonight. Please leave a review. Thanks,**

**-Lefty **


	3. We Have to Catch this Creep

**Disclaimer: not mine just in case you didn't notice**

**Spoilers: same**

**A/n: Sorry been kind of busy otherwise I'd of updated sooner**

**Thank you for reviewing. I didn't know that Close to Home was in the Midwest, but for my story it makes more sense to put them closer to Vegas, and I want to but Matt Glaser in the story as well. (The CSI from LA in Hollywood Brass) **

We need to catch this Creep

Where were we? Early morning the next day? Right, then. We had Sofia's friends over for a visit, and they wanted us to help them catch a serial killer. Most people would find odd. Oh well.

Anyway, Sofia and I were asleep in the master bedroom when Eric, Bear and Mutt decided it was time was time to wake up. Never did get around to explaining the concept of sleeping in. Of course, the dogs weren't going to walk themselves, and someone had to make breakfast.

"Daddy! Wake up! Spongebob's on." I shifted slightly, waking Sofia. "Morning, honey." Sofia groaned and looked at the clock. "You've got to be kidding." Yeah, I wish.

"But you said to wake you up when Spongebob is on." Eric pointed out. He pouts. Kid's all ready picking up on my bad habits.

Bear jumped up on the bed and started licking me. Should have got a cat. Oh well. "All right, all right. I'm up." I get out of bed and go shower. Then I grabbed the dog leashes. Sofia was starting breakfast. Eric and I walked the dogs together. I took Bear, and Eric took Mutt, even thought Bear was really his dog. That dog is bigger then he is and no nearly as inclined to behave himself as Mutt is. We always walk the dogs together. It's kind of a morning ritual.

By the time we back, our guest had also woken up. Sofia was serving pancakes and Spongebob Squarepants was flipping Krabby Patties, much to amusement of Kimberly. Eric quickly joined her on the couch while I let the dogs of their leashes and filled their bowls.

Then, I sat at the kitchen table and grabbed a cup of my Blue Hawaiian, forty bucks a pound and worth every penny. Best coffee ever. Sofia smiled at me and out a late of the best pancakes in front of me. She called the kids to the table as well.

A few minutes later, we were all enjoying, a rare, quiet family breakfast. We were making small talk with Annabeth and her family.

Then both my cell phone and Sophia's went off. It only means one thing when they both do that.

I sighed and answered the phone. "Sanders." Sofia did the same. Grissom had called me. "We've got a 419." There was a long pause.

"And?" This had to be serious to rattle Grissom like that.

"The victim is an eight year old little girl. Looks like our suspect went Jack the Ripper on her." I could hear the anger and sadness in his voice. "This sounds like a serial killer form LA."

"We've all ready called them. They're sending over one of their CSIs. His Name is Matt Glaser. He worked the LA case and he should be here in a few hours." Grissom gave me the address.

"Be there in a few minutes." I quickly dialed another number. "Lindsey, can you do us favor?" Lindsey and Catherine only live a few blocks away. Lindsey's kind of an on call babysitter during the summer.

After talking for a few seconds, she said she'd be right over. I quickly explained the situation to Annabeth and Jason. They agreed to go to the scene with us and confirm we were after the same guy. I quickly grabbed my work jacket and the gun Sofia made me carry after an unfortunate incident involving a shotgun wielding lunatic and a closet someone forgot to clear.

Lindsey arrived a few minutes later. Eric saw her and immediately understood what was happening.

"You got to work now?" He sounded disappointed. I felt guilty for leaving him, but we had to catch this killer before he struck again.

"Yeah, but we'll be back tonight."

"Promise?"

I smiled at him. "Promise. I love you."

" 'Kay. Go catch the bad guys." He smiled at me. "Love you, to."

I saw what had Grissom so upset when we got to the scene. The killer had left one hell of a mess, even by our standards. I hate these cases sometimes. I can't help thinking how this could have just as easily been my own son, and wondering what kind of animal could do this to a child. Unfortunately it was a kind that I was very familiar with.

Grissom and Warrick were waiting for us. I looked around as Jason and Annabeth brought them up to speed. The scene was in a popular city park. It looked like our killer definitely done a Jack the ripper kind thing on the girl, so at least there was a far chance he'd cut himself. He probably left tiny pieces of himself to find all over this scene. I just we were smart enough to find to find them.

A family had found the little girl when they had simply gone out to play. Sofia was getting their statements.

Grissom spoke to Dave as Rick and I started processing.

After studying this scene, all I can say is that we'd better catch this creep.

**A/n: again, sorry this wasn't done sooner. Been a little busy and last night there was a family issue to deal with. I'm hoping to write another chapter tonight. Please leave a review! This should be last chapter of domestic bliss for a while, and Matt Glaser returns next chapter! **

**-Lefty **


	4. What the heck is that?

**Disclaimer: not mine**

**Spoilers: Same**

**A/n: Thank you fro reviewing, guys! Racefh853629, thank you for reading and reviewing. The family thing had more to do with my sisters then me, but I help out when I can. Alexnandru Van Gordon thanks for reading! I thought the Jack the ripper was fun. My bad guy is going to make this personal, but not how you think he will ;) Like my chapter title:p**

What the Heck is That?

Where were we? The first Vegas scene, and the first victim here. Not a pleasant scene, but unfortunately for her, they had to make first move. You always start two steps behind. My friends and I can usually still win the game, though. A sick parody of a chess match against the twisted bastard who did this to that poor little girl. But I'm starting ramble again, and I make people nervous when I get philosophical.

Rick and I processed the scene while Grissom left with Super Dave, which is what Nick calls the ME's assistant. He's also the first one that started calling me Greggo, and it kind of stuck.

Anyway, we processed the scene for hours, not finding much. There was trace, and shoe prints, and fingerprints to look at, assuming they even had something to do with the crime. There was also lots of blood, and we swabbed every sample. Wendy's going to love us tonight.

Not too long after, Matt Glaser arrived to lend a hand, but there wasn't much left to do by time he arrived. He seemed friendly, but more focused on the task at hand then talking to us, aside from the occasional sarcastic remark. Grissom was waiting at lab. Rick was out at the street, looking at some tire treads, to see if our killer left in a hurry. The sun was setting, and Sofia had been called to another scene after getting statements from the witnesses. There wasn't much else she could do until we gave her and the DA something to run with. There were a couple of uniforms around to keep the press away for the moment. There was no point in talking to them until we had something to say.

I was walking toward Warrick and the sidewalk, when flash of some metal glinted of the flashlight beam. It was down a storm drain. It could have been anything, but I called Rick and Matt over to take a look.

"What the heck is that?"

"Looks like a storm drain, Sanders." Matt muttered, a smart-ass comment worthy of David Hodges himself.

They joined me as I knelt in front of the drain to get a better look at whatever had reflected from Warrick's flashlight. It turned out to be a rusted, bloody scalpel, and probably our murder weapon. Fortunately there wasn't much water in the drain, just a lot of mud.

"Nice eye, Greg." At least Warrick was impressed. That's hard to do. The guy is bordering on OCD sometimes, (who would keep their car's trunk that organized, besides us, of course?) but we all do that.

One of us had to go get it. Which meant I had to go get. Yeah, still on the wrong end of the chain command. Not fair, but what that bastred did that little girl wasn't either, so some had to do it. 

And scrawny Greggo was still small enough to get into drain without to much difficulty. Actually, I'm not really all that scrawny, but who's going to notice me compared to Nick and Warrick?

That storm drain smelled, well, like you would expect a storm drain to smell multiplied by ten or even twenty. It was dark and slimy, and just not a nice place to climb around in, but not as bad as a dumpster filled with spaghetti sauce and body fluids. And I went to Sanford to do this job. I'm glad I find that more funny then anything else. Fieldwork is never as glamorous as it sounds, but more then worth it.

I climbed down to the bottom fairly quickly, and photographed the scalpel. Then I bagged it, and looked around, but didn't see anything else. The killer probably just dropped it when he was running away from the scene.

I climbed up the metal rungs back toward the entrance. They were slick with mud, and I slipped when I was near the top.

Fortunately, Warrick and Matt were both right by the entrance. Matt caught my arm and saved me from a nasty fall.

My shoulder hurt like hell, but it sure beat the alternative. Matt and Rick pulled me out and gave my heartbeat a moment to return to normal before asking if I was okay.

I told them I was. The pain in my shoulder was all ready starting to subside, and we had work to do.

**A/n: Another chapter up! Hope you like it. I had a busy weekend but finally am posting this. Thanks for reading, and please leave me a review. **

**-Lefty **


	5. So what can the murder weapon tell us?

**Disclaimer: Still not mine. You probably know that all ready, but this is kind of a habit. Also, a bit of gore in this one, thinking about upping the rating though I don' want to unless you think it's necessary. There is a fine line between PG13 and R. Not sure if I crossed it, but this comes close. **

**Spoilers: same. **

**A/n: Thank you for reviewing! Alexnandru Van Gordon, Thanks for taking the time to review, and I hope I don't disappoint. racefh853629, glad you liked it. CaptainK8, thank you for reviewing. I try my best to keep them in character, even though our special guest star has only been in 1 episode. **

So, what does the murder weapon tell us?

Where were we? I had found the key piece of evidence to nail the murder to the wall. Yay, me. Kidding, of course, though it does feel good when I find something important. The fun part was learning everything possible from it. You would be surprised how much you can learn from a single object. It's more then most people would ever believe, and why it pays to be just that much smarter then the bad guys we put away every day. Oops, you know I really need to work on this rambling thing. But I love my work.

After making sure we hadn't missed anything else, Rick, Matt, and I headed back to lab to process the evidence, and hear what Grissom had learned from Doc Robbins. Even the victims themselves tell us more then you think. However, as Rick kindly pointed out during the ride back to lab, I smelled like the storm drain I had been climbing around in, and was covered in mud and slime that I didn't even want to know about. I needed to shower before I could process anything. Warrick and Matt went to the morgue to find Grissom, and I went to the locker room.

A part of me is glad I missed the autopsy. What I saw at the crime scene was enough. It's not that I'm squeamish, it's just this particular victim had rattled me. It could've been my own kid on that table. Young children had always gotten to me, but ever since Eric was born these cases really bothered me. I can't even begin to understand how someone could do that to a child.

I've also gained a new perspective on my own mother. Guess I understand why she was protective when I was a kid. I'm rambling again, aren't I? Let's get back to the case.

So I had taken a quick shower, and changed into the only shirt in my locker that didn't smell funny. It was my faded Fall Out Boy tee shirt. Not exactly profession, but at least it was clean. It made me smile to think of the night Sofia went to a concert with me.

Grissom gave my shirt an irritated look, but he knew me well enough then to bother arguing about it. He knows it probably wasn't my first choice, and was still better then what I wore when I was a goofy young DNA tech. But back the task at hand.

"Autopsy says that our victim, Samantha Moore, was reported missing yesterday. Dayshift handled the case, but didn't find anything helpful. She had defensive wounds, so she did put up a fight. She bled to death, and the murder weapon was most likely the scalpel you recovered from the storm drain. Nice job finding it, by the way. Warrick said that you were the only one to even see it at first."

It was good to hear something like that from the boss; he doesn't do that all the time, for sure. Usually being my brilliant self is expected, but that's why he hired me in the first place. Grissom will not accept anything but our best, and we are the best, I don't care if the Feds are #1, we would be if we had the kind of funding they do. Our people are the best, and I feel honored just to a part of the team. But enough of that.

Grissom clearly had more to say for our victim. He continued, "Doc Robbins said that several of her organs were missing, and that it happened while she was still alive. Her killer also clearly had medical training."

That did it. I had to catch this sick fuck before he got anyone else. We also need to get a better look at the case file from LA. Matt had done his best, but the judge wouldn't grant a warrant for the suspect, because he was an active member of the community, and the church, blah, blah blah. They didn't have anything to prove it was their man, and not enough to get the warrant that would lock him away. I also get why Warrick hates lawyers.

"Greg, since you found the scalpel, why do you tell us what the murder weapon can tell us." The boss brought me back to Earth. He was testing me, and I had a performance evaluation coming up. Lucky me I thought for moment before answering.

" Right now the best piece of evidence we've got is that scalpel. It's obviously old and not the most common murder weapon, which helps us a lot. We should be able to track its owner down, and Hodges can use it to get an exact age for it. Wendy can see if the blood matches the LA victims as well. We will also need DNA to confirm the murder weapon." I paused.

"Plus we have tons of samples from the scene to process. She's all ready back logged, and we need to catch this guy fast. I'll run the DNA myself because this is a huge priority." Not something I'd normally do, but Grissom, Matt and Warrick can go through the other evidence we found. The DNA was our best lead, and they could track down the knife with Sofia and Jason. Matt had all ready brought them up to speed.

Grissom nodded approvingly; surprised I had volunteered to help out in DNA. But I am a team player, and besides, I was not going o let my old skills get rusty. That and we needed to get this nut job off the streets ASAP.

**A/n: Another chapter down. I may post more after getting some sleep, not sure though. It depends on the weather. I would rather write if it's going to be thunderstorms like the guy on TV said it might be. A lot of character stuff, and let me know if you think I should raise the rating. Sofia should be in the next chapter, with our friends from Close to home, and little Eric, though not for very long. I also have an interesting idea for a couple of chapters in the future, which you will probably love. We've got a real sicko on our hands, and I want to catch him as much as you do, so please review. Thanks.**

**-Lefty **


	6. I think we've got something

**Disclaimer: still not mine**

**Spoilers: same**

**A/n: Thank you for reviewing. I really appreciate the feedback. Also helps to make sure that I don't take forever to update. ;) This chapter is an important turning point in the story, and depending on how much I can write before falling asleep, I may leave y'all with a cliffhanger. Sorry bout that, but I will update fairly quickly. **

I think we've got something.

Where were we? Getting ready to run DNA and have Hodges analyze the rust on the murder to see how old it is, and get an exact model. That would help us narrow the focus when we looked for suspects. Grissom and the other CSIs were looking at the rest of the evidence from the scene, as well as taking a closer look at the suspect from LA.

Normally I don't run DNA anymore, but this guy had shaken me and I knew that we had make sure that this was done right or the killer would walk, again. Not that Wendy wasn't good at her job, because she was, but we were in a hurry and she was backlogged beyond belief, and needed help. That was one feeling that I could relate to.

I grabbed my iPod and set to work. That iPod is one of the few that has stopped Grissom form strangling me. Blasting loud music in the lab was one habit he didn't really like. Grissom gave the iPod to me years ago more as a peace offering than a gift. I got the hint.

Anyway, Wendy and I were working in the DNA lab when Hodges unexpectedly tapped me on the shoulder. Did I mention how much I hate it when people do that? But leave it to Hodges be helpful and annoying at the same time. I still don't know if I want to kick his or shake his hand. But I'm trying to stop rambling, so I'll get to the point.

"Greg Sanders? You trying to move in on our jobs, to?" I just rolled my eyes.

"Do you have something useful or are you just here to annoy me and flirt with Wendy?" I'm not going take his shit right now. Hodges needs someone to keep him in his place, though I bet he says the same thing about me.

"Your scalpel is about 18 months old." He told me. That was when the first murders started. The creep had been doing this for a frighteningly long time, avoiding too much attention by keeping his kills far and few between, and by making few, if any, mistakes. Matt Glaser was the one who got the closest to him before us. That had probably rattled him and caused the killer to escalate. And start to leave us evidence by making mistakes. They all do eventually. I just hoped it wouldn't take any more victims for that to happen.

"Thanks. Any luck on the trace from the scene?" I asked, hoping that he had something for us to find out where our killer had been. At the scene, Rick had found soil and plant martial that hadn't come from the park where the body was found. It should help us find out where our guy hangs around, making it easier to find our suspect.

"Soil samples and the plants could have come from this area." He showed me a map, and was pointing out a small development on the edge of the dessert. It looked as good as place to start, but we needed more then dirt and leaves, much as put our guy at the scene, it wouldn't help if we couldn't prove that we had the right guy. I thanked him and made a quick call to let Sophia know what we had so far.

It was better than watching Hodges and Wendy, anyway. At the moment they were being extremely unprofessional. Hodges seemed to remember that he had work to do and went back to his own lab.

I told her what Hodges had found and she said it confirmed our timeline, and that the suspect from the LA murders had been a major investor in the development. He was an old pediatrician from LA that had been looking for a place to retire.

I told her what Grissom told about the autopsy. She seemed a little disturbed by what I had found, but seemed to be keeping it together well, or at least trying to appear that way. I had a feeling it was bothering her more then she wanted to admit, but here wasn't much I could do about it over the phone. I'll talk to her in private and in person later. Right now I need to make sure Wendy's all set with the DNA so we can go check out the area that Hodges says the trace came from. Fortunately, it was highly specific to area, which gave us a good reason to look. There wasn't much else to do in DNA for a few hour anyhow, at least until we had something to compare it to. Mandy had also found unknown print on the murder weapon, which meant our guy hadn't worn gloves. He should have blood on his hands, literally and figuratively speaking. They never get it all.

Anyway, I met Sophia, Matt and Jason in the parking lot to head out to the potential crime scene. Grissom and Rick still had some other stuff to check out, such as the tire treads Rick was looking at, as well as figure out where that scalpel came from.

I headed to locker room to grab my weapon, and hoped I wouldn't need it. But we have to be prepared for anything.

Annabeth was keeping an eye on the kids, as there wasn't much she could do at this point. I had called the house earlier to check on them and tell Eric I'd be home soon and that I loved him.

"Love you too, Daddy." Damn, sometimes I wish this job didn't take up o much of my life. But someone had to help make the streets safe for him and the rest of the city. It's kind of a catch 22 at times.

But we were going to bring this guy down. Matt and Rick came out just as I was hanging up the phone. Sophia and Jason joined us a few minutes later.

We all headed for the scene. It wasn't that far from the lab, and the trip done was silent, everyone expecting the worst but hoping for the best. Sophia still seemed upset, and it was bothering me to se her like that. Of course, there was every chance that the suspect would be there and we could get him before this got any worse.

He was there, but this didn't play out the we hoped it would. This psycho was too smart for that. We arrived at the scene, which was still mostly a construction site, a half dozen mostly complete condos to hide in. I had a sinking feeling we should have brought more backup.

We walked around the largest of the buildings to find our next victim. It was a little boy, about the same age as my son. The killer had practically gutted the poor kid like an animal. Matt called the corner to let him know that we had arrived a little to late.

Sophia looked a little pale and walked off. I immediately followed. It was killing me to see her like this.

"Are you okay?" Stupid question. Of course she wasn't. But I had to say something to get her to start talking to me. She looked back at me.

"No. We're too late, again." I could her the frustration in her voice.

"We will get this monster." I tried to reassure her.

"Before or after he takes another innocent life?" She muttered.

"He'll pay for what he did." The words sounded forced, but I knew we'd find him.

"I'm sorry. I guess it's just that I see what could have been our son, not just some nameless victim." She seemed embarrassed to be in this kind of position.

"You have nothing to apologize for. These cases are hard on everyone." I hugged her. "Just talk to me before you punch Brass in the nose. He might not be as forgiving as Hodges."

That got her to smile again, which made me smile. She kissed me and headed back toward the others.

Something moved in the shadows. Curiosity getting the better of me, I put a hand on my gun and went to see what it was.

Never got a chance to even use my weapon. Something hit me hard over the head and I blacked out.

**A/n: Sorry about the cliffhanger, but this chapter is long enough all ready, and I do have something to do today. I going to try and write the next one tonight, but no promises. Thank you for the reviews, please keep them coming. In the chapter after the next one, I'm going to do something interesting, and kind of funny. **


	7. Getting hit on the head lessons

**Disclaimer: not mine, sadly. **

**Spoilers: same**

**A/n: thanks for reviewing! I'm being awful to Greg in chapter. Here's the next chapter, hope you like it. Cookies to whoever guesses where the chapter title came from. **

Getting Hit on the Head Lessons

Where were we, again? Getting hit on the head lessons? Close, but not quite. I was knocked out and had no idea where we were. And that was one joke that didn't seem quite as funny as it should.

It was dark enough that when I first opened my eyes I wondered if had gone blind. My own head was pounding, and felt kind of funny. I tried to it up and wound up banging my head against something solid. An engine was running, and I could feel the vibration through the floor. It me a moment to process that I was in someone's trunk.

I kicked at the lid of the trunk, but didn't get anywhere. The vehicle felt like it was moving pretty fast anyway, and jumping out was probably not a good idea.

My gun and cell phone were missing, but Sofia and the others will notice my disappearance quickly. They know that I know better then to wander alone without letting somebody know were I am.

I laid back down to try and figure out me next move. I tried move my hands in front of me, but whoever my kidnapper was had tied them together, and seemed to have done god job with it. I fought against the ropes, but didn't get anywhere, unless causing my wrists to bleed was helpful. The rope was now slick with my blood. I wasn't getting anywhere like this.

I twisted wrists and tried to get a grip the knots that held them together and tugged. It loosened a little bit, but not enough. I kept at it.

Unfortunately, I felt the car stop before I could finish untying myself. The trunk opened and the unexpected light momentarily blinded me.

When the word came back in to focus, I found starring into a pair cold blue eyes, which gave no hint of emotion. This had to be the killer.

The man offered me a frightening smile. My blood ran cold as he yanked me up and dragged me out the trunk. He grinned again. "This is closest anyone has come to catching me, you know. I had to meet you." What the hell was he going to do to me? I glared at him.

"You're sick." I sounded a lot braver then I felt.

The creep laughed. "Obviously." He paused thoughtfully. "Those brats wouldn't stop screaming. I hope you don't disappoint me, Sanders." Which made me wonder what he was going to do with. My friends will find me before anything bad happens. I know they will.

He motioned toward a small ranch house. "Let's go."

I didn't move, and he grabbed my arm and violently dragged me to the house. I knew that leaving some signs of a struggle, my colleges would be able to find me. I just hope they get as far as wherever this house is. It's in the middle of nowhere, so finding it would be tricky. But the team is the best at what they do.

For an old guy, suspect is much stronger then he looks. We finally reached door. He held me with one hand and unlocked the door with the other. I tried to get loose, but the man had an iron grip.

He forced me through the doorway and into a house. It didn't seem to have much furniture around. The man shoved me forward, toward what looked like the living room. He had a few chairs set up, and I spotted some duct tape nearby. I had a sinking feeling that I was going be very attached to that chair in the near future. The man pushed me again.

I can't let this happen. My family needs me. I'm supposed to be cooking dinner for them with my son right now. I don't even want think about what was going through Sophia's head right now.

"Sit down." My captor growled at me. Pissing him off my have been the wrong thing to do, but it felt right.

"Go to hell." I spat. He sighed.

"Guess we're going to have to do this the hard way." That doesn't sound good.

"My friends will find you." I knew that they would. They had to.

He laughed. "Are you sure about that, Mr. Sanders?" He had read my name off of my field vest. "They might, but not until it's too late. Sad for your wife, no?" He had also noticed my wedding ring.

"Fuck you." I had to get through this, for Sophia and Eric. I can't let this happen.

"Do you have any children, Mr. Sanders?" He was trying to get a rise out of me, but I kept my mouth shut this time. "I adore children. I would love to meet them." This man is to rattle me, but I don't take the bait.

He reached into a drawer and pulled out a syringe. I don't know wan he injected me with, but I passed out within minutes.

The next thing I remember is waking up tied to the chair. The man was staring at me with a knife in his hand.

"About time you woke up." He smiled at me. I shuddered, as I wasn't thinking too clearly at the time. Guess Henry would figure out what drugs he gave me later.

The sadistic bastred in front of me held the knife up. "I think I'll have a little fun with you before I gut you like a fish, because you've all ready spoiled my fun with the kiddies." He reached forward and gave me series of shallow cuts along ribs. The pain seemed strangely distant. Wonder what Henry will find later. The thought makes laugh for some reason. Don't know Dr. Psycho gave me, but it was either too much or not enough. I apathetically watched the blood soak through my shirt.

"Think that's funny? Bet your friends won't when they find your body."

Wait. Can't let him kill me. I don't want to die. My family and friends need me still. And my son.

I try to move, but my body won't cooperate.

The guy laughs again and buries the knife in my shoulder. This time I felt the pain going through my body. I tried to scream, for some reason, couldn't. Strangely, I still didn't feel afraid.

My shoulder was bleeding freely after he pulled the knife out, but I don't think he would hit a major artery. That would spoil his fun if I bled to death before he finished with me.

He continued to slash at me his knife. The pain helped me focus enough to remember the rope around my wrists. But now my right arm didn't want to respond. I fought against the knot with my left hand as he dragged the knife across my ribs again. "Tell me more about your family. You do seem like a family man."

"Bite me." I remembered the old scar still on wrist, and fought back a laugh. "Actually, you could just go rot in hell for eternity and we'll consider calling it even." I laughed at him. If I told him about Eric and Sophia, he would just go after them.

**A/n: More cliffhangers! Sorry, I'm mean, and a little sleepy. LOL The next will be up soon, I promise. ** Please leave a review. Thanks for reading.


	8. Meanwhile, back at the Ranch

**Disclaimer: not mine.**

**Spoilers: same**

**A/n: Thank you for reviewing! This chapter in is somebody else's point of view, but we need to know what's going on at the lab, and thought this would be fun. **

Meanwhile, Back at Ranch…

Hi, whoever's reading this. It's everyone's favorite lab rat, Hodges! Kidding about the "everyone's favorite part". I know they don't like me that much. I really don't care, either. I caught Sanders writing in this and decided that whoever reads it should what's going back here while he was abducted. That way, whoever you are, you'll know Greg's not the only hero in the story. He can't rescue himself, you know.

Anyway, Sofia and the others came into the lab, extremely upset about something. I asked her what was wrong, and she said that Greg was missing. He is incapable of staying out of trouble. Then, she politely told me to piss off.

As leader of the lab rats here, I have my ways of finding things out. Gil and the others and gone to the scene from where Sanders had disappeared. I wasn't holding my breath, but we need to find him. I actually kind of miss him. He's probably the closest thing I have to a friend around.

We annoy the hell out of each other, but that's because we're sort of like brothers. We're supposed to. I do respect him. The real reason I hate fieldwork is that it scares the hell out me. I've seen what's happened to them, and I know anything can out there

I don't think I could do it all time. Anyway, I'm getting of subject. I took over looking at those tire treads to see if we can ID the vehicle. They should give us a vehicle to look for, and they had almost gotten paint transfer at the park. That should help us. We need to find fast, cause if you don't, most of the time you don't find them at all.

I had been analyzing it when Annabeth can in. worried about Greg and Sofia. What I didn't know was that she had brought her daughter and Greg's son with her. And Eric wandered into the trace lab. I still don't know how he got in here, but he did. And I found him.

"Hi, Hodges." He looked at me. Eric seemed a little confused.

"I told you last time, call me Dave." Greg told him to call me Hodges because he knows it annoys me that no one ever uses my first name, excluding Wendy.

"Daddy said you're Hodges." Kids. They believe anything you say.

"My full name is David Hodges. I just like Dave better then Hodges." I explain. Just to let you know, I'm only this patient with little kids.

"Okay." Eric pauses. "Do you know where my Daddy is? No one would tell me, so I decided to look for him."

Why the hell can't they just tell him truth? I feel sorry for the kid, and won't lie to him. I owe Greg at least that much. And Eric's a smart kid. He'll figure out soon anyway.

I knelt down to his level and looked him in the eye. Just hope I can find the right words. How do you tell a four year old that we might never find his father?

"Eric, nobody knows where your Daddy is. He went to find the bad guy, but we don't know what happened after that. But we're doing everything we can to find him." I stopped, hoping that he understood.

He looked at, with those blue eyes slowing filling with tears. "You think something bad happened to, don't you?" His tone isn't quite accusing, but it's close.

"I don't know. I just hope we find him soon. We're trying to find out what happened." That kid would make a good interrogator. He's lot like both of his parents.

Eric nods, but can't seem to speak anymore. Without thinking, give the poor kid a hug. He's crying, but doesn't seem to notice.

"It's okay. We'll find him soon." I say that to convince both of us. I'm just as worried about Sanders as everyone else. Like I said, he's kind of like an annoying brother. I can pick on him all I want, but if you even touch him I'll kick your ass. You know what I'm trying to say.

I picked him up and went see if we could find Sofia. She was in the break room, looking lost. She looked at mug in front of her. It was almost full of cold coffee that she'd poured herself a half hour ago.

"Hey." I put Eric down on the couch and sit down next to her.

"Dave said he's gonna find Daddy." Kids. And Eric tends to remember everything. He's probably got that from both his parents.

Sofia smiles at him. "I'm sure he's going to try as hard as can."

She sips the coffee and makes a face. "Yuck." Sofia dumps it and pours a fresh cup. Eric giggles.

"You okay?" Even the socially awkward David Hodges know she's not.

"Not really." She doesn't elaborate. I don't know how to answer, so I tell her the same thing I did her son.

"We will find him in time."

She actually smiles at me. "How do you know that?"

"We'll do it because we have to." That much is true.

Sofia looked at me oddly. "You know, you can be a nice guy when you want to."

"Don't go spreading it around." She laughs.

"Hodges?" Henry pokes his head in. "You've got a print out waiting."

I get up and go to check it out, hoping that it's something helpful. I picked up the page and read it. The paint matches a few vehicles, but only one that has the same tires that were found at the scene. With a little bit of help from our friends at the DMV, I think we've got a suspect. PD should be able to get a name, and the records that go with it. We

We'll get a lead on this and bring Greggo home safe, I know we will. I gave the report to Rick on his way in to the lab.

Sorry about that. It's Greg talking again. Hodges decided to leave his own entry here. I'd take it out, but tells you what went on at the lab after that asshole took me. And Hodges is right; he plays a important part here, and deserves a little recognition once in a while. Even if Archie was right, and he is a 'glory whore'.

**A/n: Done, sorry this would have been done sooner, but I had to go to work. I hate fish. Anyhow I did something fun here, do tell me what you think. Thanks again. **

**-Lefty **


	9. The Calavery has arrived

**Disclaimer: CSI isn't mine.**

**Spoilers: Same**

**A/n: Thanks for reviewing! I'm sorry that I haven't posted for a few days, but I just started another project. BTW, The title for the chapter before last is from a Monty Python sketch. **

The Cavalry has arrived

Where was I? Getting cut up by a serial killer, praying that my friends arrived in time to help, and determined to make that long. And fading in and out of conciseness from whatever the hell he injected me with, as well as losing a lot of blood. Beautiful. But I have to get through this.

I woke up for what seemed the hundredth time, just waiting for it to be over. I couldn't feel my shoulder anymore. Don't know if that's a good thing, but there's nothing I can do about it anyway. Maybe it was just more drugs.

I still can't think to clearly. Henry's gonna have a field day when they save me. I looked up at my captor. "They're gonna find me."

"You think so? I admire your optimism, Mr. Sanders." He ran the knife down my chest and stomach, drawing a thin line of blood. "I have a feeling that when they so show up, I'll be long gone, and all they'll find here is your body."

I just glared at him. "You kill me now, and they'll make sure you never see the light of day." That much I knew. Dr. Psycho didn't have an answer for that.

Then, I heard a knock at the door, along with Brass' voice. "Open up, LVPD."

"Brass! I'm…" I was cut of as the murder stabbed me in chest with his knife. I couldn't move, couldn't even breath properly. In the next instant, the door flew open and Brass entered, along with the rest of the cavalry arrived. They quickly cuffed the guy and dragged him off.

I tried to talk to them, but I succeeded in doing was coughing up blood. That can't be good. Brass took one look and called the paramedics. That's the last thing I remember a before waking up in the hospital.

I opened my eyes to find that I was in a dark, quiet room. And it had that hospital smell. I had spent enough time here to know that I was at Desert Palm.

I still felt kind of funny, but it didn't hurt to breathe anymore. The painkillers were making me a little loopy. I saw Sofia curled up in chair next to the bed, with Eric in her lap. I smiled, but was careful not to wake her. God knows how long she's been here.

Eric squirmed in her lap, and opened his own eyes. He saw me, and was going to wake up his mom, but I told him not to. Instead he just walked over to me, and sat on the bed, care to avoid my injured arm. We sat and talked for a while.

Eventually we both fell back asleep. The next time I woke up, Sofia was watching me.

"Hey" I rasped. My throat still felt kinda funny.

"Hey, yourself." She grinned at me. "You gave us all quite a scare." We sit for moment before she continued. "Two stab wounds, punctured lung, quite a bit damage to your right shoulder, not to mention you lost a lot of blood."

I grinned at her. "I love you." She leans over kisses me.

"I love you, too."

"Ewww!" Apparently, our son's awake. Sofia and I both laugh.

A little while later, we're all playing Go Fish when Grissom, Matt, Annabeth, and Warrick enter the room.

We all talk for little bit. I think they just want to want to make sure I'll be okay. They remind I need to give a statement soon. After a few more games, I'm getting kind of tired, so Sofia sends Eric out of the room, to go find Hodges or something. Sofia does want to talk to me alone for a few minutes before she lets me sleep.

"I have something important to tell you."

"Okay." I wait for her to continue.

"I think that I'm pregnant."

"What?" I wasn't sure I'd heard her right.

"You heard me." Guess did hear what I thought I did. I start grinning like an idiot, trying to think of what to say.

"That's great, Sofia." I can't stop smiling. I know that I've still got a statement to give, and a long recovery ahead, but for now, my family and I are very happy.

**A/n: Sorry, couldn't resist that bit of cheesiness. There's still a few more chapters to go, but not too many. Sorry again for taking forever to post this. **

**Please leave a review.**

**-Lefty. **


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